Lived expertise

Co-developed with parents, this brief highlights the impacts of language and why certain terms used in child welfare should be reconsidered.

Learn findings from a national survey in which three stakeholder groups voiced the systemic challenges faced by child welfare.

This appendix lists training topics and approaches that eight parent partner programs use during new parent partner onboarding.

Explore the four key pillars of ChiByDesign’s approach to successful co-design with people with lived experience.

Learn about the three main sources of funding that are used to support parent partner programs.

Explore how various parent partner programs recruit, train, and support the parents who serve as peer mentors to other parents.

This learning exchange explores the “seven levers” that are key to ending the need for group placements in child welfare.

Learn about steps agencies can take to prepare for youth involvement in their systems change efforts.

Learn how agencies can prepare to involve and share power with youth through youth advisory boards.

Learn how to invest in youth partners to improve and transform the child welfare system.

Learn how organizations, partners, and key stakeholders can assess their readiness to co-design with people with lived experience.

This webinar deepens our understanding of parent partner programs and their positive effects on families impacted by child welfare.

In this Q&A, parents describe their personal experience with the child protection system and how agencies can engage better with parents.

Learn about the key elements of successful parent partner programs that offer support, guidance, and hope to birth parents.

Listen to an audio recording to learn how birth and foster parent partnerships can build trusting relationships and lead to reunification.

Learn how Louisiana implemented Initial Calls and Icebreakers to build trust between birth and foster parents and promote shared parenting.

Explore how Youth Support Partners provide peer support and influence child welfare policy and practice in Allegheny County, Pa.

In this Q&A, David Sanders is interviewed about how child welfare agencies can improve their partnerships with birth parents.

Learn how the Quality Parenting Initiative cultivates excellent parenting and supports caregivers to improve permanency for youth in care.

This Q&A explores strategies to ensure excellent parenting for children in foster care, and to support relationships with birth parents.

Fathers play a critical role in children’s healthy development. Learn how to engage with and support fathers to prevent maltreatment.

In this Q&A, Timothy Phipps describes the importance of involving parents, especially fathers, in designing the child welfare system.

Parent partners can guide parents through a difficult time and instill hope. Learn more about parent partner programs in this issue brief.

This appendix provides a brief summary of the research on individual parent partner programs.

Families involved with child welfare systems can offer critical insights and feedback. Learn to design systems driven by their expertise.

Learn how a foster parent and parent partner worked together to wrap supports around a birth mother so she could reunify with her child.

This short video describes how child welfare agencies can operationalize the four tiers of family engagement.

These brief videos talk about why it is important to recognize the strengths within each family.

The Parents for Parents program matches parents who have been reunified with those newly involved with child welfare to provide support and guidance.

Understand the benefits of employing youth peer mentors to support young people impacted by the child welfare system.

Learn lessons from a research report that are adaptable to child welfare on how to successfully engage people with lived experience.

In this Q&A, leaders from Bravehearts and The Children’s Village describe their partnership in lifting up voices of young people in care.